Fabrizio Giovanardi to make BTCC comeback

Fabrizio Giovanardi has become the sixth championship winner to sign up for the 2014 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season after being revealed as the first driver with Airwaves Racing.

The Italian will be making his return to the series for the first time since 2010 with the Ford team, having previously lifted the title on two occasions while with Vauxhall.

The 47-year-old will be one of three drivers for the Motorbase-run team, with his two team-mates - one of whom will also run under the Airwaves Racing banner - still to be confirmed.

"I am really looking forward to coming back to this special championship," Giovanardi said. "For the last four years I have done long distance racing and for me, it's quite boring! I need to be fighting for championships and this is the best place to find that, so I'm really happy to be back. Obviously, I have to respect the other guys out there but I want to come here and try to win another championship; I need to win the third one!

"These are passionate guys, it's a small team but with people that work well together. Good people and the right people make the right target and I believe straight away that we can be one of the teams fighting for the championship."

The team will hope the signing of Giovanardi proves to be the catalyst for an improved showing in 2014 after a tough campaign last year, which failed to produce a race victory.

"This is a very important year for Airwaves Racing," team boss David Bartrum said. "This is going to be the one when we really do underline the product we've built here at Motorbase Performance and Fabrizio is the man to show you how it should go.

"I tried to get Fabrizio on board a couple of years ago, we've talked a lot about touring cars and this year I decided just before Christmas that was the right way to try and go. It was something that Airwaves set out in their criteria; they wanted us to up our game, and I was very happy to meet it.

"The intentions are the same as last year, the team wants to win. We want to win races and we want to go after the championship and if you're going to go after the championship this is the year to do it.

"There are thirty cars on the grid and possibly seven guys that have won it before; so I think it's a fantastic year for Giovanardi to come back and join us."